Purvis' Matthew Ryals 'never even thought about going anywhere' other than Southern Miss

Southern Miss put shoulder pads on Saturday for the first time since spring training began on Tuesday. Third-year head coach Jay Hopson spoke to reporters about how the first controlled scrimmage of spring went.
Jason Munz/Hattiesburg American

Matthew Ryals has always known he was destined to play football at Southern Miss.

Purvis’ rising senior offensive tackle made those intentions known Saturday, when he took to Twitter to announce his verbal commitment to the Golden Eagles.

The 6-foot-7, 280-pound Ryals is no stranger to Southern Miss. His father, Chris, was a standout at right tackle for the Golden Eagles from 1988-91.

“I’ve always been a Southern Miss fan,” Ryals said. “I’ve always gone to watch them play since I was a little kid, so I’ve always known that was going to be my choice. I’ve never even thought about going anywhere else.”

The Golden Eagles have made the offensive line a top priority in recent recruiting cycles and Ryals is more evidence of that. Ryals said he believes Southern Miss views him as the long-term plan at right tackle. Even though he’s already at 280 pounds, he said he expects to eventually add 30-40 pounds of muscle.

“They just don’t want me to add any belly fat,” he said. “I don’t think they necessarily have an ideal weight for me. I’m easily going to add 30 or 40 pounds of just muscle, because I’m still maturing and growing. So it’s going to add up once I hit the weights.”

On Saturday, Ryals was anxious to start lobbying for others to link up with the Golden Eagles.

“I’m ready to flip Southern Miss around and win a few conference championships,” he said. “Get the crowd back. Before I leave, I want the stands to be filled. And I think that will happen because we’ll have a good team if we work.”